THE ROYAL NETHERLANDS Academy of Arts and Sciences named cancer researcher Bert Vogelstein as the very first recipient of the KNAW Bob Pinedo Cancer Care Award.
In the 1980s, Vogelstein demonstrated the genetic mechanism that leads to cancer. He is now working on cancer therapies that utilize the patient’s immune system. He is also developing genetic tests for early cancer detection.
Vogelstein is director of the Ludwig Center for Cancer Genetics and Therapeutics at Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center and Clayton Professor of Oncology and Pathology at Johns Hopkins University.
Vogelstein has co-authored more than five hundred academic publications and more than one hundred patents. He is one of the most cited researchers in the world and has received dozens of distinctions, including the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences in 2013. Vogelstein is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the European Molecular Biology Organization, among others.
The KNAW Bob Pinedo Cancer Care Award is a new biennial award for internationally acclaimed researchers in cancer care. It is named after the renowned Dutch oncologist and researcher Bob Pinedo (born in Curaçao in 1943). The award is intended for researchers currently active in pioneering cancer research or compassionate cancer patient care. The award winner receives 100,000 euros to use for research. He or she also receives a bronze sculpture in the form of Professor Pinedo’s right hand, symbolising strength and hope of healing. The sculpture is designed by Floris Tilanus. Nominations may be submitted by research institutes and researchers around the world. A jury headed by an Academy member assesses the nominations.
